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Ask Slashdot: How To Determine If One Is On a Watchlist?
An anonymous reader writes: On Slashdot, we joke about it all the time: 'I did a Google search for 'pressure cooker' and I connected a bunch of times to the Tor network to download some Linux distribution .torrent files... I must be on some sort of watchlist now.' There have been news articles about people being questioned in airports and given special attention for being political activists. How can one determine is one is on a watchlist of some sort? Are there any Slashdot users who are knowingly on a watchlist? What sort of suspicious special attention have you received?
Board a plane for a domestic or international flight, and you will definitely find out.
We are all on a watchlist because the US government deems itself to be above the law.
Don't ask if you're on the watch list. If you weren't before, you are now.
Alternatively: Realize that everyone is on a watch list and nothing will happen to you unless you stir up some shit. If you're a journalist investigating this shit your life will be hard. If you're a nerd who likes to Google a lot of shit and post about how you hate the government they'll just laugh at you.
The beginning of security is to assume that you are already compromised.
Assume you already are on a watchlist, and then we can discuss about the rest.
Back in the late 1980's going to the 2600 meetings in NYC got you automatically photographed by the FBI. These days, attend a conference such as HOPE or DefCon, and I guarantee you're on a watchlist.
If telephones are outlawed, then only outlaws will have telephones.
I've had you on my watchlist for the last few months because your apartment is across the road from mine and you don't close your bedroom curtains at night. In case it matters, you're in the 10:25-10:35 time slot.
Cooking devices and Linux torrents a domestic terrorist do not make. You must be a little on the (possibly overly) cautious side to use Tor (private) for torrents (public) in the first place. FOIA requests would probably work. But a cup of chamomile tea might do you more good in the long run.
Quack, quack.
I would assume that attempting to find out if you are on a watch list is just the kind of thing that would land you on a watch list.
"Hmm, this guy is worried we are watching him, I wonder why, let's keep an eye on him, shall we?"
We know who you are and are watching you. PS. Stop touching yourself.
BTW, having a wireless password of password is just asking for it.
(If at first you don't succeed, do it different next time!)
See any drones circling above you?
If Yes = You're on a Watchlist and should probably start running
If No = You're on a Watchlist and have nothing to worry about
-==- Buy a Mac and leave me alone!
add a hundred agents on the line 2 hours prior to the flight when entering the airport, and you got agents harrassing you left and right from the moment you step out of your place of residence, don't even get me started if you live in an apartment, what was that "no fly list" that you can't even know if youre on, gov/ia incentive to businesses/individuals by way of monetary compensation and lower tax(no wonder they complain about irs thing like theres no tomorrow), other than that, do something profitable in business/army/nasa, and im sure youl be able to grab the attention of other foreign gov/ia because your a "terrorist"(sarcasm at the end)
I spoke with a friend on the phone not too long ago, and we may have mentioned a bunch of ECHELON keywords. I don't TOTALly RECALL...;)
My phone did auto-restart though (which it has never done in the 2 years I've had it, no updates either...) after that I only got 3g, and crappy reception in my apartment.
I was like for someone in IT, couldn't you afford a 4G stingray?
I art more snarky, and terse than thou. I art Slashdot!
Do you use the internet? You are on a watchlist. The more interesting question would be which ones, and of course most of us have no way to know.
I spend a lot of time reading and commenting on current events on another site, and I like to back up my comments with citations, so this leads me to Google all sorts of things. Offhand today I've searched for feces swastika (re: the U of Missouri stuff) and officers shot or killed (a story about one officer shooting another off-duty officer). Last night I was reading a thread about the Mazda RDX and so I Googled RDX; RDX is also the name of a military explosive. Around that time I was also searching for various terms related to the Missouri protests.
Some overzealous algorithm might see a person searching for RDX and Mizzou and officer and shooting all within close proximity, and get me on a list I really would rather not be on. That's one of the big problems with automated bulk surveillance, I imagine it's connecting a lot of dots that truly aren't connected.
See you on the list!
Thanks to the War on Drugs, it's easier to buy meth than it is to buy cold medicine!
They'll tell you when they come for you.
In my particular case, I first learned I was on a terrorist watch list in 2004, when I renewed my drivers' license.
The lady at DMV informed me of it, and said there would be an additional three-week wait for my license while they did a background check on me.
Ever since, every time I've flown, I've been pulled aside for additional searches and questioning,
The fun part is that there's no way to get off the list. I've now have three Congressman and a Senator from two different States tell me this.
The really infuriating part is that I suffer from an anxiety disorder. The only danger to those around me is if I go off my meds and then fly to pieces so fast people get hit by the shrapnel.
Microsoft leads to Bluescreen; Bluescreen leads to downtime; downtime leads to suffering.
Why were you downloading torrents through the TOR network? Its pointless and clogs exit nodes.
Only the State obtains its revenue by coercion. - Murray Rothbard
You are already on a watch list. Somewhere.
After all, most NSA people are geeks, and so they read Slashdot. To the point they did a MITM using a fake Slashdot page.
Oh, and by the way: hi NSA!
A more serious reply is this one: they don't want you to know you are on a watch list. If you represent a serious target, they REALLY don't want you to know. On the other hand, if you have any reason to suspect you are a serious target, assume the worst and unplug now.
The right to offend is far more important than the right not to be offended. (Rowan Atkinson)
Simple. Just pick up the phone and ask the dial tone.
My wife and I were added to some expedited airport list so that we go through a lower level of screening than other passengers. This year, it appears that our kids were added as they had to go through the regular line in past years and now go though the same line with us. I don't really have a clue as to how all of this stuff works.
If the government didn't know about you before, they will after you get hired for a government job. My two-hour background interview lasted four hours because I had to list every I.T. contract job I did since the Great Recession. Security folks frown on the practice of having two jobs at the same time, say a weekday job and a weekend job, which I had to do after being out of work for two years and filing for chapter seven bankruptcy. Living in the same studio apartment for ten years was another flag, as that was inconsistent with being unemployed for two years and filing for chapter seven bankruptcy. We went back and forth on those two points. And then Chinese hackers stole my background file along with millions of other government employees.
Of course not, citizen. Thank you for asking. Could you step this way for a moment, please?
"Transparent" is a shit show that trades on every stereotype going. A man in drag is NOT a transsexual.
Back in '97, my roommate and I went over to Vietnam. She's from there and we went over to visit some friends--purely tourist stuff. While I was there, I visited the Cu Chi tunnels and picked up a Vietnamese Officer's cap from the gift shop--My "Commie Hat," as I call it. I brought it with me on the flight back and was wearing it when I got to the airport in the US.
So I get off the plane and I stop and look at the big sign they have discussing things you can bring in and can't bring in and the duty that needs to be paid and stuff like that. I didn't bring much back of particular value and wasn't too concerned. I mostly just wanted to rest for a minute. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a uniformed customs person staring at me. I glanced over and sure enough, there he was. Just standing there and staring at me. I continued my walk to baggage claim and he starts following me. When I get to baggage claim, I hang around and wait for my bag and the guy is still standing around and staring at me. My bag--a big ol' duffel bag--shows up and I sling it over my shoulder and trudge off to customs. Off he goes as well. While I'm waiting in line there, he's still standing off to the side and staring at me! I declare that I have a couple of knit caps and a half-naked woman ashtray in my bag. They didn't really search my bag or anything too severe and I think I might have paid a few bucks--I don't really remember. Then I left, with the customs guy still staring at me as I walked away.
The only thing I can think of was that I was wearing my "Commie Hat" and that stuck in his craw somehow.
congratulations! you're on /.
1. Make a FOIA request with your name and possibly other identifying information
2. Congratulations! You are now on a watchlist
"You're right," Fisheye says. "I should have set it on 'whip' or 'chop.'"
At this point, what difference does it make?
If you are on a list, you are on it. You won't know one way or another until some authority who uses the list when dealing with you, and even then you may not know. Apart from actually doing something illegal, chances are you will never be on a list beyond the IRS's.
IMHO - I'm just guessing here, but I seriously doubt that you have caught the attention of *anybody* compiling lists of people to watch compiled by the government if your identity wasn't already suspect. Just doing a Google search, or to or 100 isn't all that significant. Downloading lots of stuff though Tor is not significant either. Unless you are routinely calling your local ISIS recruiter or something else DIRECTLY suspicious, I seriously doubt there is much you can do to get on some government list. There are over a hundred million people in this country, you are going to have to really do something to stand out in the crowd and what you describe is unlikely to draw any attention.
"File to fit, pound to insert, paint to match" - Aircraft Maintenance 101
The fun part is that there's no way to get off the list. I've now have three Congressman and a Senator from two different States tell me this.
There is a way, but 3 Congressmen and 2 Senators isn't enough.
If you had 218 Congressmen and 51 Senators and the President on your side, that might be enough, but just to be safe, get 61 Senators on your side.
They can pass a "private relief act" type of bill to remove you from the watchlist. Once the President signs it, it will be law.
Knowledge is how to play a game, intelligence is how to win, wisdom is knowing what game to play.
Not part of Thomas Jefferson's plan for democracy. Who is the enemy? YOU ARE!
If you get a plane ticket and it's has the 3 letter code SSSS
then you are on list to be pulled aside for special screening.
But this watchlist is kinda arbitrary. got a couple cousins that work for TSA, of course it's easy to infiltrate TSA as they hire anyone when there's openings. Even highschool dropouts work for TSA minimum wage.
Anyhow they've fucked with assholes before by tossing them in the list so any future plane tickets they ever purchase will be tagged SSSS
SSSS = the new "SS" hehe
but yea you see this: http://i.imgur.com/Ns42bla.jpg
you are on watchlist.
here's wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/...
But TSA can add you to it to troll you.
I heard one story woman kept snapping at them to hurry, and was being rude. They know everyone hates TSA, they even hate it, but only thing that was hiring at the time.
There's about 7 or 8 in his area and woman just kept tossing insults.
so after she got through, they added her to the SSSS list. So any airport and any airline she will be pulled out of line for special secondary searches.
There are also tales of TSA trolling sports figures, wwe wrestlers and some celebrities, and filmmakers like michael moore/morgan spurlock and adding them to the watch list :P
michael moore had a huge bitch session on his blog long ago after finding out he's on the tsa list.
but thats just the TSA watchlist.
there are other lists, NSA/CIA/FBI/ATF/etc... dozens of alphabet pigs
Oh, and they are tracking your cell phones. Always.
And, yes, your xBox One and PS are spying on you, as well as Windows 10.
Well luckily I don't have an Xbox One, PS, or Windows 10. What kind of idiot would willingly use any of those?
The cellphone one isn't so easy to avoid however; it's pretty hard to get along in today's society without one. But if you're going to do anything you're not supposed to, it is easy enough to just leave the phone at home that day.
The sign is when they won't let you check-in online.
My neighbor's kid has the same name as an IRA terrorist ... so they had to go through loads of crap every time, to explain that he's 3 ... he might be a terror, but he's not a terrorist.
I don't know if they still have problems flying with him or not. (He's now in high school)
This is part of the reason why the 'there are only (x) number of people on the terrorist watchlist' is problematic -- you have (x) people with (y) permutations of their aliases which means (z) people are stopped every time ... except for the people who we deem *so* dangerous that we don't want them to find out they're being watch ... so they're allowed to fly.
Build it, and they will come^Hplain.
My guess: If you post on a major technical site asking as an anonymous coward how to find out if you are on a watch list, you are on a watch list.
You may not be on a no fly list, and it may a watch list of "mostly harmless" people, but you're on a watch list.
Pressure Cooker + Ina Garten = cool
Pressure Cooker + ISIS = no fly
Pressure Cooker + Anthony Bordain = check for drugs
Apply for a security clearance for work or to improve looking for gov/mil work.
Look into getting a police check or certificate for local work.
That would induce paperwork see if a person has been placed on a basic, direct national not trusted list.
The "political activists" can face a very passive surveillance just to see who a person talks to, walks with, sends emails, letters, phones, spends hours with.. IM lists, IRC, web 2.0, international VOIP, IM with a person not added to a friends list or not shared with a common third persons IM list, any contact with 1950-80's activists or their work.
A lot of advanced "charity" and "corporate" network tracking is often shared with or sold to gov, mil to see what political connections people make.
If you are a journalist, press, media expect gov backed malware crafted just for your computers, cell phone. No consumer grade protection will have any record of it and view it as normal OS like functionality. Traces of such efforts can point to gov interest in a person.
What are most Western governments looking for at this time is passive collect it all databases that show hops, links, connections, people talking politics, crypto.
Build up too much of an online reputation and have the ability to sway, protect or publish mil or gov whistleblowers material is really when the gov and mil take note.
Crypto and advance maths skills? Creating open source projects with advanced crypto skills passed on from advance university learning that was for placement for mil or gov jobs. Changing from closed source well paid private sector skills to open source crypto.. that will get a lot of gov attention and for anyone in the same project forum, IRC chats, code site.
What books a person buys online on what topics. Years of bulk non fiction can show a person deep in thought about political issues. Some more nonfiction book orders can help with that list..
Basically a person is waiting for enough of a gov database to move form a person of interest to active protest group or political group creation.
Another tracking point is *who* is reading your work, code, looking for you online. If workers with security clearances are been tracked looking up your blog, your work as a journalist, chatroom, code project, as an author...in own time, at home.. your work is an issue for a gov or mil.
University presentations on open, public papers surrounding crypto, gov, mil whistleblowers material even if your nation has freedom of the press, freedom after and of speech.
'How Covert Agents Infiltrate The Internet To Manipulate, Deceive, And Destroy Reputations" (Feb. 25 2014) https://theintercept.com/2014/...
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
First, if you're a US citizen or Green Card Holder, or applying for a Green Card or citizenship you're on a passive watch list by the FBI.
This is a thought of as a protective service, an insurance policy provided by the government by investing in you, as a citizen to be a part of this country, and by you choosing to be a part of this country.
What this passive watch list means is - first and foremost - if you show extreme pattern disruptions and interruptions in your behaviors which can be detrimental to your health and/or to others around you - then there could be psychological or other influences occurring to you that may be the product of things outside your control or even awareness through foreign governments and/or malicious company practices and/or any other set of indeterminate and often obscure reasons which warrant FBI investigation.
MOST of these reasons are known as domestic terrorism, it's not sold as such publicly because of the connotation terrorism has with Al Qaida and Bin Laden and the sort, but the effects can be just as detrimental to a large population if not at the very least understood, and in some cases, the risk is mitigated.
Second, this watch list also actively monitors you while you're outside the country - largely because most people aren't aware of how much of a problem human trafficking is when they travel abroad and what the FBI does to mitigate this risk - whether you travel alone or with others. There's other reasons to actively monitor you while abroad, and personally I have been requesting the FBI announces this practice publicly for years and let this be an 'opt-in' service.
The FBI maintains an active watch list for domestic citizens and internationally people and organizations for a literally ever changing variable set of reasons. Back in 2005, for instance, that watch list included keywords used in phone conversations which use 'bomb and president and kill him'. That's evolved dramatically since then, and the list of reasons that you might go from passive monitoring to active all depend on the operation within the organization. This list is not just not publicized, but is typically very dynamic and based on the agency they are dealing with (ie: IRS, Homeland Security, President and/or the Oval Office, etc)
The NSA, like the FBI, is the same way with the dynamic list, with one glaring exception: The focus for the NSA is both prevention of corporate and government espionage and support of counter espionage research, and protection of informational and intelligence assets. So if you represent a credible threat to these, then I can guarantee you you're their watch list and I can guarantee you that your cameras and microphones everywhere you go are in passive listening mode transcribing everything you say and do. Other threats that the NSA pays attention to are largely new technology threats, which has the NSA paying attention to on the wire chatter and the development of new ideas and inventions that might create a risk to the CIA, FBI or NSA.
Central Services is leveraged to disseminate technological threats. Terrorism in any form is the FBI's deal, so Central Services is used to provide intelligence information for these.
The CIA doesn't have watch lists. Period end of story.
How do you determine if you're on watch list?
There's literally thousands of teams within the FBI alone each potentially operating in silos. And while the NSA is less silod, and more hierarchically based, there's no one single watch list that's maintained and largely it's hidden behind layers that even the best agent can't get to.
The short answer is: Unless you're stopped and turned away at the airport. You don't represent an immediate threat to the United States.
But you're not going to know if you're on someone's watch list within any of these agencies.
No one person knows. That's why they call it "Top Secret/ Compartmentalized Local Information"
Compartmentalized.
Read: No one knows.
The NSA have set up a hotline for this. The number is +49 174 276 6483 and you'll be added to the watchlist with no further fuss. More details here: http://hop3.de/konzept_en.html
Every time i fly i am subject to the "random" bag search.
Yes, but not one that you can access or prove that you're on. When I got put on a list that required additional ID checks every time I checked in for a flight there was no way to verify officially that I was on the list or determine what list I was on or challenge my inclusion on the list.
Even the aide from my U.S. Senator's staff (I live in a small state and our elected officials usually try to be helpful with constituents' complaints) who was assigned to help me with the matter could not get verification that I was on a list.
Eventually I got taken off of it (I think -- at any rate I no longer get consistently stopped before check-in and required to undergo additional checks) but there was never any explanation how or what or why.
And have a background processes constantly browsing livegoatporn.com so they have something interesting to look at while they're watching you.
I'm trying to teach myself to set people on fire with my mind... Is it hot in here?
I was on a list. I don't know what list. Or why. Or how I got added. Or how I (eventually) got removed (I think the latter has something to do with a review process that my senator's staff helped initiate.)
For me it took the form of an additional ID check. When flying, I was not permitted to print boarding passes in advance or check in at a kiosk in the airport - I received a non-specific error message if I tried either of those things and was told to check in with an agent. Then, when I would check in with an airline agent, when they pulled up my reservation they would see some kind of flag on the record which required them to take my photo ID and go into the back room and make a phone call before I could be cleared for boarding. Sometimes it took 5 minutes, sometimes it took 45 minutes -- I missed a couple of flights because of delays due to this before I realized it was happening every time and I needed to allow extra time for it.
The odd (and to me, stupid) thing about it is that I never received any additional screening at the security checkpoints as a result of this list. You would think that if I was suspected of being a risk in any way they would have done at least that (not that I'm sorry they didn't, it's just that there seemed to be no rhyme or reason to their system and it was completely opaque. A couple of the check-in agents admitted to me unofficially that it was a TSA thing but they were forbidden from saying anything officially.
...and ask. Whatever the answer you know for sure you're now on a watchlist.
Slashdot, fix the reply notifications... You won't get away with it...
they can watch me pick my nose, and scratch my ass, and then i will wash my hands and cook lunch, since i almost killed myself on a motorcycle i am as harmless as a kitten, i can barely walk anymore, now that i am more comfortable in a chair i am considering teaching myself some basic coding on linux and maybe if i am lucky i will make some software that will make people happy
Politics is Treachery, Religion is Brainwashing
Maybe parents should think about this *before* they give their child a name.
don't cut it off www.mgmbill.org
Make of FOIA request for my FBI records; receive back a redacted copy of my request.
My name came up as similar to a listed person when I opened a bank account. A banker friend may be able to run your name.
I also got more attention from the TSA, but that may be because I used the same bag for a carry-on that I had previously used to go to the gun range, leaving a bit of powder residue all over the bag.
I assume I'm on a few lists because I work in internet security, meaning I frequent web sites related to hacking and such, plus I (legally) work with fireworks, so I order chemicals and such that could be used to make explosives. Lastly, I'm a conservative who once checked out a Tea Party event, so the current administration is definitely notices that. The IRS started calling after I followed a tea party page on Facebook. Might be coincidence.
That AC is hoping the data capture, entry and analysis is been done looking for another nations spies. A nations best of the best are looking for another nations best spies is the vision been sold to the public.
The problem is the rapid expansion of staff with list addition access. Political waivers for cleared staff getting social advancement to make hiring statistics look better, state level random additions, party political reasons. The people cleared to create a list, add to a list or make the decision on the level of 'watching' is now a rather a big tent. Public and private sectors workers have to 'add' to lists just keep their gov happy.
No bid contractors doing internal clearances for needed teams of staff members (everyone is cleared as the boss is cleared by default), the rushed need for staff with language skills getting access, paper work "dual" citizens with other loyalties, past skills been upgraded for security work adding lots of names for decades.
The ""percolate" to the top" red tape that kept the best mil and gov databases mission focused is now been replaced with new ideas and considerations. Lists are now added to for internal performance quotas or driven by private sector profit considerations or just to keep a clearance active.
Automation also floods databases, every licence plate down roads, databased images of driver and passenger, every active cell phone tracked in an area, tourist or photographer tracked back to their vehicles licence plate and reported for camera use..
Domestic spying is now "Benign Information Gathering"
The Slashdot audience is now testing the Streisand Effect on such terms.
Airports will end up with a "slashdot room" where we are all housed while they check further. You'll know when you are escorted to a room with 30 other neckbeards who smell like pizza.
Table-ized A.I.
if you got a name and/or a face and/or have ever left the woods, your're leaving trails that will be collected, linked and analysed. but there's only so much money the lizard people can give to the illuminaliens to pay for your anal probes. also, unfortunately the financial crisis affects the interstellar export of soylent green and glagnar's human rinds too, so that leads to budget cuts as well. so, until our new & cheap robot overlords take over, you're pretty much safe.
"Why should I change my name? He's the one who blows people up!"
Linux, you magnificent bastard, I read the fucking manual!
Getting the case open is the big first one, as you say, that's easier said than done. After that, you need to put a switch into a case that was designed to be as small and slim as possible with no mind paid to allowing said switch. Though I suppose you could put in a magnetic switch or something.
In short, a major project. Unlikely to be done by any but the most dedicated, in which case it's quicker/easier to simply do what the military does - dump all the cell phones and such OUTSIDE.
I don't read AC A human right
Comment removed based on user account deletion
Unfortunately this is one of those issues where, rather than seeking information to demystify the government's behavior, many people cynically fall-back on something like, "we're all on a watchlist." We're all the weaker for it as a democracy.
It may be the case we are all being "watched" in some way but that is not the same as being on a "watchlist." If everyone were on a "watchlist," there would be no need for a list. In reality, the government maintains many kinds of lists for many different purposes.
If you file a Freedom of Information/Privacy Act request with an agency like the FBI, NSA, or CIA asking if you are on a watchlist, you will receive a form response stating they cannot confirm or deny either way for any person. The government will almost never acknowledge whether you have been placed in a database of some sort. Thus, most people find out they are listed only after they experience differential treatment that is characteristic of some of these lists, particularly those related to travel security. (I heard of an individual who learned they were on a watchlist because they attempted a legal name change and the required background check from the court disclosed (inadvertently?) that he was on the Terrorist Screening Database.)
One of these lists is the Secondary Screening Security Selection list that some have alluded to. If you can't print your boarding passes online, can't check in at kiosks, or have an "SSSS" on your boarding pass, those are signs you are in that database. As a result, you will be subjected to extra scrutiny when traveling through airports. However, people who have received an SSSS undergo varying levels of scrutiny (not all are subjected to the same treatment), so there may be more nuances behind the scenes. Furthermore, sometimes your travel pattern will flag you and you will receive a one-time SSSS. For example, if you purchase a one-way ticket a very short time before your flight, that might trigger an SSSS for a single trip but not permanent placement on a list.
People on this list can file a request for review under the Traveler Redress Inquiry Program (http://www.dhs.gov/dhs-trip). the review process is opaque. At the end, you will receive a notice that says something like, "If corrective action was necessary, it was taken," without confirming or denying whether you were on a list to begin with and whether you were subsequently removed. Reportedly, this process works best in cases of mistaken identity, ie, having a name similar to someone the government intended to list. You will receive a "redress number" that can be plugged in to future flight reservations. If it wasn't a mistaken identity issue, then the reviewing officer behind the curtain will have to determine whether you merit placement on the list. I'm not sure if there is information available about how many people are removed from a list after filing a TRIP complaint.
Some people have stated that posting comments online with certain code words can trigger placement on a watchlist. Although that may be true down the line, it probably is not automatic. One of the main systems for these kind of incidents is a federal program called "Suspicious Activity Reporting," which goes by the marketing slogan, "see something, say something." Behind the posters, though, there is a network of ~80 "fusion centers" which are collaborations between federal, local, and state officials to share and analyze intelligence. An intelligence analyst at your local fusion center will review every Suspicious Activity Report and conduct any necessary evaluation/investigation. After reviewing, the analyst will decide whether to "nominate" the Suspicious Activity Report to the eGuardian database (one of the terrorism intelligence databases) and your name could be associated for years with suspicion of terrorist activity. The ACLU published many of these reports from California a few years ago and found they included things like "speaking excitedly in a foreign tongue" or taking photographs of dams, courthouses, and other
"Oh, this makes me so mad. I could just..."
Sleep your way to a whiter smile...date a dentist!
... courtesy of the Democratic Party's paranoia of the Tea Party
I'm sure my name pops up on several watchlists -
First, I am from China, that was before I ran away from there and end up in US as a refugee
After reaching US I studied, graduated with some fancy degrees and started my career in high tech fields
I have been 'invited' for 'interviews' several times by 'security people', including FBI, concerning my investments, particularly those in businesses which has direct dealings with defense projects. They are also interested in my businesses abroad, especially branches in 'sensitive regions' such as Africa, Russia and China
With all those 'interviews' getting no where, they finally, through IRS, awarded me with a thorough audit
And oh, I forgot to add, when that too came up empty they tried to frame me by linking me to Chinese triad activities
Can't fault them for trying so hard though ...
After all, a minority (Chinese) like me supposed to support the Democratic Party. The problem is I refuse to buy into their bullshit and gave my support to the Tea Party instead
I know how to play the game, after all, I survived the Culture Revolution, where even more brutal 'games' had occurred
Muchas Gracias, Señor Edward Snowden !
The best way is to live in a democracy that cherishes freedom of speech and will protect your constitutional rights by not introducing laws that attempt to bypass them.
My ism, it's full of beliefs.
Aw man someone else is using my witty original wifi network name...
That's how I assume watchlists work. If the NSA wants people who like back-of-the-bus sex in Chicago, that's the combination they search for. The results could be called a "list" I suppose.
(||) Nehmo (||)
Just pick a name of someone who's a big name in security and not likely to turn whistleblower-- like someone on this page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/... Then at least if you start getting harassed, you can presume they are too...
You mean like the parents of Bobby Tables?
On flights, the male cabin crew always give me special attention. I have a feeling I am on the list
What if all of us, and our friends, childrem, coworkers, etc. included some kind of inflammatory keywords in the subject or the body of every email we sent? This would have the immediate effect of 'lighting up the switchboard" at the NSA. While a few of us might get a call from the NSA, the vast majority of us could relax, knowing that whatever harmless activity we might actually be emailing about would be overlooked as the NSA investigates 20 billion emails that advocate "per to the hedonists" (it's an anagram- I'm not crazy!)
You would want to be sure that you weren't the only one doing this though. We could probably get some russian spammers to help out... Now that's a headline I'd like to see- SPAMMERS SAVE THE INTERNET!
This might actually work. It would sure be fun try it to see what happens. Who's in?
chris watts íë¦ìS ì(TM)ì
I've been searching for years to learn more about the weapons I use in online games. It's a particular fascination. Of course possessing such weapons in my country is illegal with many years of time in jail as a punishment. I can imagine that I am on a few watchlists for that alone. Add to that an intense interest in electronics and computers. There is no hope for me.
I'm putting mine on before even reading any comments.
To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
There are so many watch lists with such ridiculous and arbitrary criteria that it's impossible to tell which ones or how many you are on.
Trying to board an airplane would tell you if you are on the "No Fly" list of course. If you're allowed to board but often get singled out for extra scrutiny, you might be on the terrorism watch list.
When you try to buy a gun, you'll find out if you're on a list of "prohibited persons", but that's not exactly a "watch list". Usually that check happens in a few minutes, but the feds can impose a 72 hour delay. They will claim it's due to high volume or that your personal info is similar to that of some prohibited person, but getting singled out makes me very suspicious that I'm on some list which causes them to subject me to extra scrutiny.
Thanks to the government's network of "fusion centers", any state, local and federal authorities can file a "suspicious activity" report about you, even if you've committed no crime (never give them your ID unless you are required by law to do so). Ever heard those PSAs "If you see something, say something."? That 1-800 # (rat-on-your-neighbors hotline) probably gets you on the same list.
I'd say that if you've ever engaged in any sort of political activism, especially libertarian causes, but also environmentalism, pacifism, drug legalization or digital privacy, you're probably on a list. If you visit a mosque or have an Arab-sounding name, assume you're on a list. Basically, there's no other logical course of action than to assume you're on a list and that all of your actions and communications are being constantly monitored.
But if you're going to do anything you're not supposed to, it is easy enough to just leave the phone at home that day.
Flagged.
What you need to do is build up a pattern of sometimes taking it and sometimes not taking it, so that it's not possible to determine from the location of your phone whether you're doing nefarious stuff. It's like someone earlier said about encryption, you need to use it for everything you do, mundane or not, for it to be effective, otherwise using it becomes a flag in its own right.
you guys realize that reading this puts you on the list, right? Or not reading it, just because you thought about it and decided not to.
No, the kind of moron who's dumb enough to spend good money and waste time on Windows 10 and its shitty Metro interface.
In the UK, the Theresa May Bot will tell you your threat level by putting you in the appropriate list: https://twitter.com/theresamay...
I'm 'Deviant Level 3', a fact which I was _thrilled_ to discover ;-)
"If you think the problem is bad now, just wait until we've solved it." --- Arthur Kasspe
I just had to sit in a room for 5 minutes and then answer some inane questions, and I was on my way, rectum unscathed.
Better luck next time!
To have a right to do a thing is not at all the same as to be right in doing it
Everybody is suspect.
Deal with it.
aaaaaaa
If you get routine free anal exams from the TSA, you might be on a watchlist.
If your state troopers know you by your first name, you might be on a watchlist.
If you see men wearing dark sunglasses staring in your windows, you might be on a watchlist.
If the bank tellers always call someone on the phone everytime you go into the bank, you might be on a watchlist.
If you PC camera turns on by itself all the time, you might be on a watchlist.
+1 funny xkcd ref
Nothing posted to
You're all on a list now. You're welcome.
*** SMACK*** is the sound of dave420 going down eating his words getting bitchslapped by apk http://slashdot.org/comments.p...
I'm the guy who stripped during a TSA screening in 2012 at Portland Airport. I've had no trouble flying since then. Maybe it's because I took action against them them directly. Here's a link to the slashdot story back then: http://idle.slashdot.org/story... Story update, for those who are interested: I was quickly acquitted on the criminal charges of indecent exposure. The judge said, "What else would it be (other than protest)?" to the DA who had no case. The civil case, which the TSA took 2.5 years to decide, continues. I'm appealing their decision that I "interfered with the screening process" to the 9th Circuit Court. I've learned a lot during this process, but that's another story. More info: http://www.nakedamericanhero.c...
-J
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